Bonds
by Saturn Girl
Summary: While separated from the rest of the group, 10k gets into a bit of a bind and Murphy may be the only one who can help...whether 10k likes it or not. Cover art by Eneada, used with permission (@eneada on Tumblr, @eneadart on Instagram and Twitter)
1. Chapter 1 - 10k POV

After traveling all over the country and back again, the small towns and rural roads all seemed to blur together. 10k often had the sense of déjà vu that he had been on this particular street before, even though he wasn't quite sure what state he was in, let alone what city. It had only been a few weeks since the team had failed to prevent the Black Rain from spreading across the world; 10k was feeling rudderless and out of sorts, so he welcomed any semblance of familiarity.

_Welcome back to Anytown, USA. I wonder if they have a cheese wheel?_

10k leaned his rifle against a chimney and took a sip of water from his canteen. Ever since the Black Rain, the sky had a continual dark tinge to it, like an electrical storm was always brewing on the horizon. It made it difficult to judge what time of day it was, but 10k figured based on the position of the sun that it must be late afternoon. Doc and Murphy had set up camp near the edge of town, while Sarge and 10k split off in separate directions to do some scavenging and reconnaissance within the city limits.

From his rooftop perch he scanned the abandoned city block looking for signs of movement. Luckily they had not encountered any Zs in the area, a blessing after they had barely escaped a huge throng of dead Girl Scouts the day before. The little Zs were always the fastest! Unfortunately, none of them had any boxes of cookies and 10k's stomach was rumbling. He hadn't had any luck scoring supplies from the apartment building he'd just searched. Hopefully Sarge had fared better. He'd scout around for another few minutes, then head out to reconnect with the others.

After the complete failure of their mission, 10k had been tempted to head out on his own to find Red, but none of them were sure yet how the Black Rain had changed things. He knew his chances of survival were higher if he remained in the group, so 10k reluctantly agreed when Doc and Sarge asked him to stick around to help search for Warren.

So far they hadn't seen any sign of the drone ship. Murphy had assured everyone that she was still alive, that he could feel her and use their special bond to track her down.

_We better find her soon, because I don't think I can take much more of Murphy acting like he's the boss of everyone!_

It worried 10k that Murphy's strange abilities were making a comeback, and that he now looked like a demon straight out of Hell. The old nightmares about Murphy biting him had returned with a vengeance, but 10k was too embarrassed to talk about them with anyone. They dredged up a flood of uncomfortable memories of being trapped in Murphy's thrall; he never wanted to feel that violated and powerless again.

_I miss you, Red. When I was broken, you were the one who pieced me back together. I'm so sorry I failed you when you needed me._

10k tried to shake off a pang of guilt. So much had been weighing on his mind lately, he was grateful for a bit of privacy to try to sort things through. It wasn't just Murphy he was worried about. Although he'd promised Red he'd move on with his life, after all these long months he still longed to find her. He didn't want to admit she might be gone forever. But becoming intimate with Sarge had complicated things even further, and he was having a difficult time figuring out what he wanted.

Despite Sarge assuring him that it was okay to "keep things casual," he had no clue how to do that. He was never good at shutting off his feelings, and it wasn't for lack of trying. Since the Z outbreak he had often wished he could be numb to everything. The truth was he liked Sarge…a lot…yet he also felt like he was taking unfair advantage of her.

Especially when the nightmares returned, and he'd reach for her in the middle of the night. Under the cover of darkness he'd pull her close and imagine he was back in Red's arms, back in the idyllic meadow of his fantasies where she'd stroke his hair and whisper that he was safe and that everything would be okay.

He knew it was wrong. Sarge was an incredible woman, she deserved better. He wasn't proud of himself, but he kept up their trysts because those moments together were the only times he could push aside his grief and pretend he was happy again. Until she'd kissed him that first time he never knew how much he had needed that release. _Joy is precious_, Doc had once said. He'd told 10k to hold onto it when he found it because you never knew when it would be stripped away and replaced with some new variant of zombie hell.

So he'd held onto her and let himself enjoy the simple pleasure of being close to someone. But it pained 10k to know that one day he'd have to make a difficult choice and either let go of Red, or let go of Sarge.

_Hey, wait a minute…what was that noise?_

10k roused himself when he heard someone shout and what sounded like a scuffle coming from the street behind him. He grabbed his rifle to check things out. He crept over to the roof ledge and used his scope to locate the source of the sounds.

In an alley down the street he could see an older white man in denim overalls carrying a baseball bat tussling with a clan of Enders. It looked like he'd already taken out one Ender based on the bedraggled form slumped on the ground, but he was outnumbered and the feral attackers would soon have him cornered.

"Shoo! Stay back!" the old man yelled at the Enders. He swung his bat at the approaching Enders who snarled angrily at him.

10k had no desire to kill any of the Enders, but he couldn't let them hurt the old man. He aimed his rifle above their heads and fired a warning shot.

As soon as they heard gunfire, the Enders panicked. They grabbed their unconscious companion and scampered back down the street, muttering and howling incoherently.

"No, wait…" the old man yelled after the departing Enders. "Aw, God dammit." His shoulders slumped.

10k deftly clambered down the fire escape. "Hey, mister, are you okay?" he asked when he got to the bottom. 10k was confused when the older man looked more disappointed than relieved. He was panting from exertion but otherwise looked unharmed.

"I will be." His frown upturned into a smile. "Thanks to you, young man!" He clapped 10k on the shoulder. "You showed up just in the nick of time. But we best skedaddle, before any more of those fellas come back." He pointed his bat towards the street. "I live not far from here, so let's go!" While they hustled down the alley, he thrust his hand at 10k. "Good to meet you, son. I'm Fred, by the way."

10k returned the handshake. "I'm Ten Thousand. I helped you, so maybe you could help me. I'm looking for a friend of mine. Maybe you've seen her? Pretty black woman, long white hair, total bad ass? She might have passed through here recently."

"Huh. White hair you say?" Fred searched his thoughts. "I don't think so. We don't get many survivors around here anymore, except for some pesky Enders now and then. But when we get back to my place you can ask my daughter, Darla. Maybe she knows something."

"Great! Thanks." 10k checked out their rear flank, and it did not appear that they were being followed. The Enders were all gone, but gunshots could also attract Zs, so it was best to be careful.

When they emerged from the alley, Fred motioned 10k towards a brick townhouse down the block. "Right over there on the corner. Darla was taking a nap when I left, so she should still be there."

With his rifle raised, 10k quickly scanned the perimeter looking for additional threats before approaching, but the coast looked clear. He took note of the pharmacy – it might be worth looting before he returned to his friends.

"Hey, you said you were looking for a pretty black woman. Is that her?" Fred pointed behind 10k.

"Warren?" 10k excitedly turned to look, but there was no one there. Before he could say anything else, something hard smashed against his skull and then everything faded into darkness.


	2. Chapter 2 - Murphy POV

Murphy dug through the back seat of the smashed up mini-van, hoping to find a bag of stale Goldfish crackers, a package of gummy bears, anything to satisfy his gnawing hunger. His fingers latched onto something between the seat cushions…he dug it out, but it was only a bejeweled makeup compact. He flipped it open and checked himself out in the tiny round mirror.

_Hello, handsome!_

He smiled and stroked his beard appreciatively. Murphy kind of liked the new red look. It was…distinctive. Not to mention a little easier to explain than the old blotchy blue look. When strangers gawked, he'd just ask them if they had any extra sunscreen and they'd leave him alone. He tossed the compact back in the van.

"Dude, are you picking up anything new on Warren yet?" asked Doc. He threw another piece of broken furniture on the fire he'd built to boil their drinking water.

Murphy kicked a crumpled soda can across the street. "Not really. I got a flash a few hours ago, but nothing since. I keep telling you, I never know when I'm going to connect." His stomach growled again. He was disappointed that the city was so picked over when it came to supplies. They'd have to move on soon if they wanted to find their next meal.

Doc stationed the pot of water over the fire. "So how does it work, anyway? Can you read her thoughts?"

Murphy turned over a sturdy plastic bucket to use as a chair and sat by the fire. "Not exactly. I might be able to see memories if I try really hard, but mostly I pick up what my Blends are feeling. And it has to be a strong feeling for me to get a good read." He grinned. "Thankfully, Roberta gets pissed off a lot."

Anger wasn't the only thing Murphy had gotten flashes of from Roberta. Regret, shame, self-recrimination…he'd felt waves of that, too. Teller's deception about the Black Rain was obviously weighing very heavily on her. But despite how low Roberta was feeling these days, Murphy found that he enjoyed sharing this emotional connection with her. It was almost like the bond he'd once had with Lucy. It made him feel far less isolated from other humans, which is how he'd often felt over the last few years.

"Hold on a second." Doc looked over at Murphy. "Blends?" he asked, emphasizing the plural.

_Oh, shit._

Murphy shirked nervously on his perch and pretended to be fascinated by a bottle cap he'd picked up off the ground. "Wow! Look at this! Remember PBR?" Murphy launched into his best Dennis Hopper impression. "Heineken? Fuck that shit. Pabst Blue Ribbon!"

"Don't change the subject on me. You said 'my Blends.' Are you saying you can still feel more of 'em out there?" Doc scrutinized Murphy's face trying to get to the truth.

_Dammit. This conversation just slid down a very slippery slope._

To be honest, he wasn't sure if he could pick up any of the Murphytown Blends, because he hadn't bothered to try. Out of sight, out of mind. But he definitely had a blazing fast wifi connection when it came to Blends he knew well. He'd been able to dig a little into Roberta's mind before the Black Rain, so that really didn't come as a surprise. But 10k…that was quite unexpected.

_I thought Sun Mei canceled out the whole Blend thing. I mean, I felt his mind slip away. Or maybe that was just because he died? I don't know. The zombie rules keep changing all the time. Maybe the Black Rain did something to him, too. Technically the kid did die, after all, and these days that's when the weird shit starts happening._

While Roberta hadn't ever held her transformation against him, Murphy knew how much 10k feared being a Blend. Not just back in Spokane, but now, too…Murphy could literally feel it emanating from the kid in waves. At first, the resonance of trauma had taken him aback…Murphy hadn't ever considered that the boy might not have gotten over his ordeal.

_For Pete's sake, it's been two years! Isn't it time to let bygones be bygones?_ _Well, okay, okay…I guess I did kind of abduct him, lock him in a cell, turn him into my slave and sent him off to assassinate Roberta. Mea culpa! But at least I gave him that fabulous leather jacket! I even had it tailored for him and everything. Thanks to my snappy sense of style, he never looked better. That's gotta be worth something…right?_

Murphy had decided to keep their re-established bond to himself, because the last thing he wanted was for 10k to freak out…especially if it involved shooting him in the face. So for his own safety he'd tried very hard to pretend nothing had changed. It had been immensely difficult, to say the least!

Murphy grudgingly supposed he had the kid to thank for helping him figure out how they could find Roberta. Luckily, the day Murphy's powers rebooted was also the day Sarge decided "what the hell?" and figured if the world was going to end, she might as well bang 10k.

_Who could blame her? 10k may be a pain in the ass, but he is also a fine piece of ass. If she hadn't grabbed him first, who knows what could have happened._

Doc and Murphy had ducked out of the hangar to give the two some privacy, and it wasn't long before Murphy was hit with his first empathic flash: exhilarating pleasure.

He had to hold onto a guard railing to keep from melting onto the concrete until the feeling passed. If Murphy's face wasn't already red, Doc would have seen him blush harder than he ever had in his entire life. He'd stammered some lame excuse and stole away to discretely rub one off in the rest room.

It had not been hard to connect the dots. Whenever 10k and Sarge hooked up, he was barraged with wave upon wave of pleasure that he assumed synched with their lovemaking. Murphy hadn't masturbated this much since he'd left prison.

_Those two lovebirds are wearing me out, but I have to admit, vicarious orgasms are a million times better than any porn ever invented! Especially since I haven't gotten laid since I fled Zona. _

Yep. Being bonded to 10k was very, very weird.

In the past 10k had been inscrutable and defiant, making Murphy dig deep for the tiniest glimpse into his psyche, and now after the Black Rain upgrade it was like he was an open book. Every time Murphy experienced a flash he was torn between savoring the intense intimacy, and wanting to respect 10k's boundaries. Being able to feel things from 10k's perspective had made him more sympathetic. He didn't want to cause him more distress.

_Because when the kid is upset now, who feels it? That's right. THIS GUY._

Back in Spokane, 10k had been the only Blend who could ever wall him out. Despite their acrimonious relationship, Murphy always secretly respected 10k. He never knew whether his other Blends were being honest with him or just telling him what he wanted to hear, so it was strangely refreshing whenever 10k would defy him. That was probably the same reason Murphy had always been attracted to Roberta, too. He admired a strong will.

Yet Murphy had been so excited when he'd finally penetrated 10k's mental defenses during the knife game, after he'd fought so long and so hard to resist his influence. It was almost intoxicating, that feeling that 10k was completely his.

But that hard won victory soon felt hollow. Murphy finally had his fealty, but it was like 10k's entire personality had been erased. Thomas was just another sheep like the other Blends, and Murphy had missed their delicious tension.

Now instead of wishing 10k would let him in, Murphy had been concentrating really hard on keeping 10k's emotions out. He was too much of a tempting distraction when Murphy knew he needed to concentrate all his efforts on finding Roberta. Unlike the kid, she needed him.

So far, suppressing his link to 10k seemed to be working. He hadn't picked up anything since the Girl Scout attack.

"Hello? Earth to Murphy! What is with you today? Are you bogarting some Z-Weed or what?" Doc prodded him with the stick he'd been using to stoke the fire.

Before Murphy had a chance to respond, Sarge walked around the corner carrying a backpack.

Grateful for the distraction, Murphy dropped the bottle cap and stood up. "Ah, just the lady I was hoping to see! " He clapped his hands together and rubbed them. "So? What's for dinner?"

Sarge grinned and dipped into her backpack. "Catch!" She tossed two big cans of Alpo dog food over to Murphy.

"YES! Stew time!" he exclaimed. He rummaged through their supplies to pull out the can opener.

"You guys seen Ten Thousand?" Sarge asked. "We were supposed to rendezvous at the Circle K, but he didn't show."

"He said he saw an advertisement for a gun shop, he probably went out to check for ammo. I think it was on Walton, or maybe it was Walter Street." Doc made room for the cans of dog food next to the pot of water. "I'm sure he'll turn up soon."

"I don't know. I'm concerned. I heard a gunshot not long ago. Was that you?" she asked.

"Pshaw!" Murphy scoffed. "Who needs guns? I'm more of a swashbuckler these days," Murphy joked, waving his cane blade around with a dramatic flair. "You never have to reload."

"Welp. Now you've got me worried, gal." Doc stood up and brushed the dust and ashes off his pants. "Murphy, look after the fire while we track down the kid."

As they made their way to leave, Murphy dropped his blade on the ground. His pupils rolled back, exposing the full whites of his eyes, and he started shuddering like he was having a seizure.

"What the hell?" Sarge rushed over to grab Murphy before he could fall. She looked over at Doc. "Has he ever done this before?" Doc joined her to ease Murphy gently to the ground.

"Murphy? Murphy!" Doc shook him to try to evoke a response. Just as suddenly as the episode began, Murphy stopped quivering and his eyes returned to normal.

"He's afraid," Murphy mumbled so softly the others could barely hear him. The look on his face was one of abject terror.

"Huh? Who's afraid? Warren? Are you picking up Warren?" asked Doc.

"No. He definitely said HE," insisted Sarge. "HE'S afraid."

Murphy pushed himself off the ground. He was still shaken, but coming back to himself. "I-I wasn't even sure anything could get to him like that. Yesterday we were surrounded by 20 creepy Girl Scout zombies and the kid was as cool as a cucumber."

_Maybe suppressing 10k's emotions wasn't such a good idea after all…it felt like some kind of dam just burst!_

Doc's eyes widened. "The kid? Holy shit. You're Vulcan mind melding with 10k! I knew you were hiding something!" He grabbed the lapels of Murphy's jacket. "Where is he? Can you still feel him?"

"He's feeling…trapped. Helpless. He's not far from here." Murphy muttered. He closed his eyes and moved his head back and forth like he was trying to hone in on a signal.

_The kid isn't just scared, there is something else there, something disturbing that I can't quite suss out._

Sarge wrinkled her brow in confusion. "Can someone please explain what is going on? And by the way…since when does Murphy give a crap about Ten Thousand? I thought they hated each other."

Murphy let out a wry chuckle. "Oh, he hates me all right." Murphy pulled himself out of Doc's grasp and rubbed the bridge of his nose like he was recovering from a migraine. "I can pick up that emotion loud and clear on a daily basis."

"You need to focus that mental mojo on finding 10k, and you need to do it right now!" Doc demanded angrily, poking the red man in the chest hard enough to make him wince. Doc shook his head. "Damn you, Murphy. You really should have told us about this before, man."

"Oh, really? You think so?" Murphy snapped. "Do you think 10k would want everyone to know that I can feel it every single time he gets off with Little Miss Friends With Benefits over here?" Murphy yelled, motioning at Sarge. "Do you have any idea how many times I have had to change my shorts after one of your (finger quotes) 'rendezvous?' Jesus! Didn't anyone ever teach you kids about abstinence?!"

Murphy immediately regretted his outburst when Sarge turned as red as her hair, and Doc withered into an embarrassed grimace.

"Ooookay. You're totally right. That is definitely something I'd rather not know," Doc said, his hands raised in a surrender gesture.

Sarge's features hardened while she stood in front of Murphy and glared up at him, arms akimbo. "Me, either. So why don't you shut your big mouth and start leading us to Ten Thousand, or the only thing you're gonna FEEL next is my boot up your red ASS."

"Fine." Murphy picked up his sword and snagged one of the cans of dog food, wincing a little as the hot metal singed his fingers. "But we're eating on the way." He scooped the food into his mouth as fast as he could while they hurried down the street.

Sarge nudged Doc. "What's a Vulcan?" she whispered.

The trio only managed to cover two blocks before Murphy stopped in his tracks. His cheeks bulged and he clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Oh God," he moaned. He urped behind his hand. Doc and Sarge paused and turned around to face him.

"Are we close? What's happening?" Doc cocked an eyebrow when he saw Murphy's face turn from bright red to light pink. "Um…you don't look so good, man."

Murphy rushed over, yanked the boonie hat off Sarge's head and violently puked into it.

"Hey!" Sarge's nose wrinkled when she caught a whiff of the vomit, while Murphy heaved and heaved into her hat. "Oh, gross!" She tried to wave the smell away with her hand.

"Great. Food poisoning. That's exactly what we need right now," Doc said with an exasperated sigh.

"It's not the dog food…it's 10k again," croaked Murphy. He spit, trying to rid himself of the last vestiges of bile in his mouth. He meekly handed the vomit filled hat back to Sarge. "Sorry," he shrugged.

Sarge looked down at her ruined hat, scowled at Murphy, and tossed it into the gutter.

"We're definitely close," Murphy said, wiping his mouth on his jacket sleeve. "I can still taste what was in his mouth, and it was like something crawled up and died in there." He frowned and spit again. "On a scale of one to ten, 10k's anxiety level just shot up to 27."

"That's it." Doc coned his hands around his lips to amplify his voice. "10k! 10k! Kid? Where are you?"

"Doc, keep it down. We gotta be smart about this. We don't know who or what might be with him." Sarge shouldered her rifle, put her back to the wall and scanned the rooftops with her scope looking for trouble. "You got any intel you can share on that?" she asked Murphy.

"All I know is that 10k is miserable. But it's the apocalypse, isn't that kind of the default setting these days?" Murphy unsheathed his blade and followed Sarge's lead.

"Look!" Doc pointed to the sign on the corner reading 'Walton Street.' He pulled out his hammers and crossed to the other side of the road. He paused in front of a CVS Pharmacy. He leaned down and picked something up off the ground.

"Guys, I found 10k's goggles," Doc yelled. They were speckled with fresh blood. "Murphy, you were right…he must be somewhere nearby!"

"Movement, eight o'clock! Window on the second floor of that townhouse!" Sarge pointed her rifle towards the building in question.

_That's it. That's where he is! We found him!_

Murphy stopped after he picked up another intense flash of fear from 10k, because this time it came with a one word message:

"DANGER."


	3. Chapter 3 - 10k POV

"Unghhh…" 10 groaned. He tried to clear his throbbing head while he sputtered in and out of consciousness. In between flashes he became vaguely aware of something tugging at his legs and a viscous fluid seeping into his eye. Confused, he blinked and tried to focus on where he was.

_How did I get on a bed? Wait…is that blood on my forehead? What is going on?_

His head hurt, and his vision was blurry. He groggily moved to rub his eyes, only to discover he couldn't because both his arms were lashed to a bed frame.

"What the hell?" His predicament jolted him to full consciousness. He tried to yank his wrists free but the cords binding him were too tight and the bed posts were fashioned from solid wrought iron. 10k looked down at his feet to see the old man he had just met finishing up the final knot on his ankle.

10k panicked when he realized that not only was he tied to a bed but the old man – _Fred? Was that his name?_ \- had stripped him down to his maroon undershorts. The rest of his clothes were in a heap on top of a bedside table.

_Great. Why do all the psychos and perverts survive the zombie apocalypse?_

"Let me go!" 10k yelled as he thrashed and struggled trying to wrest himself from his bindings, to no avail. The mattress was wrapped in slippery plastic which made it difficult to get any purchase.

His frustration ramped up to fear when he took in the rest of his surroundings and saw a rainbow assortment of plastic shower curtains tacked to the walls and floor, all of them splashed with copious amounts of dried blood. With a sinking feeling he realized he was not the first prisoner Fred had tied to this bed. Who would have thought a room plastered with images of sea horses, flamingos and tropical fish could be so terrifying?

Confident his knots were secure, Fred patted 10k's bare leg and creakily rose from a crouch to his feet. 10k slackened and ceased his struggling when it dawned on him that it wasn't desire that he saw in his captor's eyes.

It was guilt.

"Why are you doing this?" 10k asked him. "I helped you!"

"I know, and I am so sorry about this, son." Fred shook his head, his creased face filled with woe. He pulled a handkerchief from his overall pocket and gently dabbed the blood out of 10k's eye - a strange kindness, given the dire circumstances. "I can see that you are a good kid, and there sure aren't many like you left in the world. The ugly reality is that now we all have to make the hard choices to feed our family."

_Oh crap, not cannibals!_

10k remembered the horror stories Cassandra had told him about her days with that cannibal cult. Since the Z outbreak, food had become scarcer and scarcer with every passing year. He'd had some close scrapes with desperate people during Black Summer himself, and some of the Enders they'd encountered in the past few years had devolved into eating each other. If 10k's father hadn't taught him how to live off the land, he'd never have survived this long.

"Fred, please…you don't have to do this," 10k implored. "Look, I can help your family. My friends and I have food back at our camp. Just let me go and -"

"No, you don't get it." Fred stuffed the hankie back in his pocket. "The Black Rain changed everything. My daughter…I guess you could say she has very specific dietary needs. A can of peaches just ain't gonna cut it. I would have preferred one of them Enders you scared off, but now you'll have to do."

He walked through the open bedroom door to a room across the hall that 10k could see was locked from the outside with several large padlocks. Fred pulled out a ring of keys and started unlocking.

"Darla? Wake up, dinner's ready. Just like I promised."

10k's heart pounded as he tried again to pull free from the cords, but with every struggle they cinched tighter around his wrists and ankles. He saw that the window next to the bed was cracked open.

"Doc! Sarge! Murphy! Help!" he shouted. 10k had no idea where Fred had taken him, but maybe his friends were within earshot. He couldn't just give up and let himself get eaten.

Fred unlatched the final lock and opened the door.

A woman in a red sundress padded out of the room, her head hung low and her long white-blonde hair obscuring her features. Or was she a Z? 10k honestly wasn't sure. The skin on her bare arms and legs looked dead and grey, but oddly she didn't lunge at Fred like a zombie. Was she trained?

10k kept shouting. "Doc! Can you hear me? Anyone?"

The Z yawned and stretched. "What's with all the yelling?"

10k was stunned into silence. _Since when could zombies talk? _Then he remembered how Doc had said he'd heard a new rumor about talking Zs, but at the time 10k had figured someone had been smoking too much Z-weed. Apparently the rumor was true!

Darla perked up as soon as she saw 10k. She pushed the hair out of her face, revealing a grossly swollen nose, milky yellow eyes and rotting patches of flesh around what looked like a huge bite on her cheek. She was probably quite beautiful once, but now she was a decomposing mess. If she wasn't a zombie, she was doing an awfully good impression.

"Oooh, Daddy, is that for me?" She gave her father a hug like he'd just surprised her with a birthday gift.

"Try not to make a big mess this time, pumpkin." Fred kissed his daughter on the forehead. "Sorry, son. I wish there were another way, but you gotta understand. My Darla has…needs." He cast 10k one last regretful look before heading downstairs.

"Mmmmm. Fresh brains!" When Darla grinned at him she revealed a black, rotten maw behind her yellowing teeth. She stalked towards 10k. "You. Look. So. Yummy," she purred as she teased her finger slowly from his ankle, up his leg, across his chest, along his throat until she was able to grasp his chin.

"W-what are you?" 10k cringed away from her fetid breath and tried not to vomit as she leaned down and licked the blood off his forehead.

Memories of Murphy flooded back to him. _"Don't fight it, kid. It will all be over soon…" _His heart began to thud faster and faster. "No…please…don't bite me!"

"What am I?" Darla giggled. She plopped down on the edge of the bed and traced playful circles around 10k's nipple. Trapped as he was, he couldn't angle his body away from Darla to make her to stop. "What are you? Because you sure don't taste or smell like other humans."

_What does that mean? I thought Sun Mei cured me. Am I still different?_

She eyed 10k hungrily like a predator ready to pounce, but her features abruptly froze when she glanced at his arm lashed to the frame.

"Wait a second…that's a zombie bite." She grasped his forearm and rubbed at the scar Murphy had given him. "No wonder you smell different. You're just like me!"

10k almost blurted out that he was nothing like Darla, until he realized this might be his out. "Uh…yeah! I'm like you! So you better not eat me…because…uh, we probably have mutated brains or something!"

"Wow! This is amazing!" she squealed with glee. She sprawled on top of 10k and hugged him so hard he could barely breathe. "I knew I wasn't the only one!"

10k blew her long strands of greasy hair out of his face. Although 10k now had hope of surviving this bizarre encounter, it was somehow getting even more creepy. "Lady? Um, do you think you could untie me now? Please?"

She responded by kissing the side of 10k's neck.

_Uh oh…I really, really hate where this is heading…_

"But this could be so much fun, too," Darla purred. She pressed closer and undulated against him while she suckled his neck and jawline. 10k was beginning to wish she had eaten his brains as he tugged futilely at the bonds holding him prisoner.

_This is not happening this is not happening please don't let this be happening…_

"Mmmm. It has been so long since I have been with a man," she moaned into his ear. She nibbled his lobe while she nuzzled him. "Just think, together we could repopulate the earth with a brand new race!"

"Let me get this straight." He coughed and swallowed back the bile forcing its way up his throat. "A minute ago you wanted to eat my brain, and now…now you want to marry me?"

Darla rolled her eyes at him. "Jeez. Aren't you old-fashioned! I don't want to marry you, silly boy." She grasped his chin and forced him to look her. "I just wanna jump your bones!"

When she leaned in to kiss him, 10k recoiled and tried to move his face away, but she ignored his protests, forced her bloated tongue through his lips, and devoured him. It horrified him that she tasted like spoiled, maggot infested meat left in the sun all day, and 10k had never felt so nauseated in his life. When she finally pulled away, he gasped for fresh air and it was all he could do to keep from retching.

She straddled his thighs and flipped her hair back, striking a playful pose. "Although I have to say, you are quite the catch," she cooed. "Gorgeous, still have all your teeth, and you're not decomposing!"

10k winced when Darla leered down at him in a way she probably thought looked seductive, and then her hand roved lower, inching toward his shorts.

"Hey, hey! Watch the hands!" He blushed and tried to buck Darla off of him, but it only seemed to excite her more. "Please, stop!"

"My, you are so hot when you're flustered! C'mon, baby. Don't be shy. Let me make it good for you." She leaned down and lapped at his nipple, then dotted his neck and chest with kisses, descending lower and lower towards his shorts while he squirmed. 10k blanched when she got a little too forceful and her nose suddenly separated from her face; it was barely hanging on by a tiny strip of flesh.

"Oh my God!" 10k dry heaved. It was a good thing he hadn't eaten in two days or else he'd be painting the pink flamingo shower curtains with his vomit.

Darla tried to push her nose back in place, but it kept flopping back and forth, revealing her bloody nasal cavity and part of her skull. "Ugh. I hate it when that happens!"

10k gulped, trying to suppress his gag reflex. "Darla, please! Before this goes too far, can we talk first? Get to know each other? We just met!"

"Oh, fine. Party pooper!" Darla pouted, but 10k breathed a huge sigh of relief when she lifted herself off him to sit at the edge of the bed again. She reached over to the bedside table drawer and pulled out a tube of Krazy Glue, which she used to re-affix her nose.

"Tell me the truth. Does this look okay?" She turned her face back and forth to show him different angles.

10k thought it looked crooked, but he nodded sheepishly. She seemed satisfied by his response and tossed the glue back in the drawer.

"Okay, so talk." She adjusted her skirt and primped her hair. "What is your secret? How do you keep from falling apart? How often do you have to eat brains?" she asked.

"Ew." He grimaced at the thought. "I don't eat brains!"

Darla looked doubtful. "Never? Then what do you eat?"

"Normal stuff. Fish, crickets, puppy chow if I can find it…"

She pushed at his chest. "Get out of here! You were bitten, just like me. Are you seriously trying to say you have never craved brains?"

"I'm not lying! I died two years ago, but since then I have never wanted to eat anyone."

10k thought back to when he had died. He had been feverish, so his memories were chaotic, but forever ingrained in his mind was the sensation of Warren choking the life out of him. Red's beautiful face looking down at him had been marred with tears. 10k had been terrified, gasping for breath, not understanding what was happening, but then there was nothing. The fear, the pain, all of Murphy's influence nattering in the back of his mind, it all slipped away and everything went gloriously quiet.

Death had been a relief, like being completely immersed in a warm bath or being wrapped up in his mother's quilt…but just as soon as he accepted his fate, he was violently jerked out of that perfect tranquility and he woke up looking at Murphy's face.

_Damn him. He knew I never wanted to be bitten! What if Darla's right, and I am like her? It took years before Murphy started going all freaky Zombie Messiah. Am I going to start craving brains, too?_

"Huh. So you died before the Black Rain?" Darla's voice jolted him back to the present. "Maybe that explains it. That gunk messed everything up. I can't remember everything, but Daddy said I got attacked by a Z and I woke up like this. I was fine for a while, but then the cravings started. I'm normal most of the time, but if I don't eat brains every other day I start to go all 'UHRRR!'" Darla curled up her hands into claws and acted like a lurching zombie.

"I'm sorry this happened to you." And despite everything, 10k meant it. In a way, this might be his fault. He and his friends unwittingly let the Black Rain descend upon the world. It changed all the rules, and now Darla was paying the price. No matter how hard he'd tried, ultimately 10k couldn't control himself when he was a Blend, so how could he expect Darla to resist what she had become?

Darla shrugged. "I guess it is better than dying. But I could do without the rotting, you know?"

"…or the brain eating?" 10k added.

"Oh, man. Brains taste AMAZING." Her face lit up and she licked her lips at the thought. "You don't know what you're missing!"

"Uh, I guess I'll have to take your word on that. How many people have you eaten, anyway?" asked 10k, unable to contain his morbid curiosity.

She tapped her cheek while she considered. "Five? No, six. They were all Enders," she said with air of dismissal. "They were so far gone that I tell myself they were mercy kills. Besides, I'd rather eat a stranger than attack Daddy. He's all I have left…except I guess now I have you, too!"

Suddenly, 10k could hear someone yelling in the distance. "10k! 10k! Kid? Where are you?"

10k's heart leapt for joy. "Doc? I'm h-mmmph!" His happiness was cut short when Darla swiftly clamped her hand over his mouth to muffle his cry.

"Shhh, baby. We don't want anyone to ruin our fun," she whispered. "We haven't even gotten to the good part, yet!"

_Good part? Hell, no! The only "good part" in this scenario is me getting the hell out of here!_

"Mmmmrph!" 10k bit into her hand and shook his head trying to free himself, but Darla was very strong and seemed immune to pain. While he struggled, she grabbed his bandanna from the pile of clothes next to the bed and used it to gag him.

"Guys, I found 10k's goggles," Doc yelled somewhere off in the distance. "Murphy, you were right…he must be somewhere nearby!"

"What the heck kind of name is 'Ten Key' anyway?" Darla whispered. She slid the window closed and smiled down at her silenced captive. "Never mind. You can tell me later, baby. Right now I'm going to go find your friend so I can eat HIS brain!"

10k's eyes widened._ No! Don't hurt him! _ he muttered from behind the gag. He glowered at her and yanked furiously at his bonds. The cords were so tight they were starting to dig into his flesh and cut off his circulation.

Fred burst into the room carrying two rifles, and 10k recognized that one of them was his own. He tossed it to his daughter. "Look alive. We've got company! An old hippie, a red haired boy, and a fella with the worst sunburn I've ever seen. "

The old man was surprised to see that 10k was still alive. He shook his head with an exasperated scowl. "Darla! Honestly. Ever since you were a little girl, I never could get you to stop playing with your damned food."

"I'm keeping him, Daddy. So we need to take at least one of the strangers alive." She looked over at 10k. "If you're a good boy, I'll share my brains with you. You'll start to like them, too. I promise." She blew him a kiss before she followed her father downstairs.

10k was desperate. He couldn't figure out to free himself, and now his friends were in trouble. He had to warn them somehow. He tried one last gambit not knowing whether it would even work…and half hoping it would fail.

Forcing away all his apprehension, he reached out to that cobwebby, long walled off part of his mind that had once been his psychic connection to Murphy and with all his might tried to push out a message:

"DANGER!"


End file.
